Crossing Ways
by TheRealMaraJade
Summary: While some part, others meet. A post Goblet of Fire fanfic about Bill Weasley and Fleur Delacour, and what they did to help in the war against Voldemort. WiP to fit with OotP, as in 'NOT contradicting new canon'!
1. Chapter 1: Magical Creatures

**Crossing Ways**

_Author's Note: When I first read _Goblet of Fire_ and Harry said that Bill, former Hogwarts Head Boy, was just plain "cool", I was intrigued by him. Then, when I found out the HP fandom, I became obsessed with him after reading Arabella and Zsenya's _After the End _and JediBoadicea's _Job Hazards_. So, I dedicate this fic to them, as I would never have written this if I hadn't become obsessed with Bill. And while I tried to write my very own version of Bill, their take on him was so well done and his character such a mystery in Canon that I think some parts of their Bill got mixed with Canon!Bill and therefore influenced my grasp on his character. :)_

Chapter 1: Magical Creatures

When Bill arrived at Hogwarts on the day of the Triwizard Tournament's Third Task right before dawn, the only person he found awake was Hagrid.

"Good mornin', Bill! It's bein' a long while since the las' time I saw yeh."

"Yeah, Hagrid, it has." He winced at the memory of meeting Hagrid's newest pet at the time, a three-headed dog affectionately called Fluffy. "So, couldn't pass up the opportunity to have another interesting creature under your care, could you?"

Hagrid wriggled his hands together, "Well, when yer brother told me yeh wanted ter come to 'Ogwarts ter watch the Triwizard Tournament, I thought Professor Dumbledore could ask yeh ter bring one o' those," Hagrid pointed to the huge cage besides Bill, "ter use in the maze."

"Yeah, I'm sure that's what crossed your mind." Bill said, quirking an eyebrow up. "It's pretty difficult to get hold of a sphinx, Hagrid, since they are really rare beasts and not so friendly as you would think." Perhaps so if you considered the kind of pets Hagrid said were friendly.

"Oh, well, yeh managed it. Now, we need ter get it into the maze before anyone can get a sight of it." Hagrid brushed his hands together in utter delight.

Bill shook his head, a half-smile on his lips at Hagrid's almost childish excitement over a beast that could tear a member off a grown wizard. He only hoped for Harry's safety that he either didn't meet the sphinx at all inside the maze or that the sphinx asked Harry the same riddle it had asked him a few days before. That is, if his little brother's pride hadn't prevented Ron from confessing to his friend that he felt completely terrified by spiders.

After safely and rather easily placing the magic-induced asleep sphinx inside the maze, Bill turned to Hagrid and asked, "Has my mum arrived yet?"

Hagrid looked confused for a moment. "Mrs. Weasley is coming ter Hogwarts? What did Fred an' George do this time?"

Bill had to laugh, "No, they didn't do anything this time." Or at least he hoped so. "It's just that Mrs. Diggory told her that she and her husband would be coming to watch Cedric in the Third Task, and she was sure that Harry's Muggle relatives wouldn't come. So, she decided to adopt him for a day. Mum's got a pretty soft heart, and after that article that said that Harry still cried at night because of his parents, she's been fussing about him even more than she already did before."

Hagrid mumbled something under his breath that remarkably resembled "that Skeeter cow", but Bill might have been wrong.

***

Later that same morning, Bill finally met with his mother, who didn't waste anytime to harass him because he hadn't come over to the Burrow before coming to Hogwarts, and how Bill was not as dedicated a son as Percy was. 

Bill only sighed. His mum always fussed over Percy, and she had become even worse now that Percy was in trouble at work. And that was something Bill would never ever expect to happen with Percy. His brother, being the perfect and dedicated worker that he was, surely would be in a very bad mood because of that.

"Mum, Dumbledore asked me to bring him a sphinx for the Third Task, and since I know you wouldn't be glad to see one messing around in your living room..."

Bill never got to finish his sentence.

"A SPHINX?" Molly shrieked. "Bill, that was dangerous! You could have got yourself badly hurt! What was Dumbledore thinking? And Harry! Isn't it bad enough that they have him getting past dragons and merpeople, now they want him to go through a sphinx?"

Bill sighed. It was at times like this that he was glad to be working at Egypt, quite far from his mother. Not that he didn't like her. He knew that she only wanted what was best for him, but sometimes she was just... too much. Bill loved his mother, but being away from her helped him endure her excessive care and worry. Sure, he missed her. He missed his brothers, sister, and father as well. But he also loved his job, and Bill was sure that he would miss the thrill and excitement of being a treasure hunter for Gringotts. He would be far more miserable at Ottery St. Catchpole with his family than at Egypt away from them.

He couldn't be a treasure hunter at England. Not because there were no treasures to be found, as England was the land of fog and mystery, but because his mother would fear for his safety during every one of his missions.

No, living in Egypt may well be painful for him, being apart from his family and all, but it was better that way.

_Besides,_ Bill thought, _I'm not the one who works with Dragons._

"Mum, it's alright. I can deal with a sphinx easily. Besides, you should talk with your voice lower, unless you want the rest of the champions' families to hear what they're about to face."

At that, Mrs. Weasley stopped talking, but remained fuming about her son. He sighed once again. He just HAD to put his foot into his mouth by mentioning the sphinx, hadn't he?

Soon, though, the door to the chamber they were in was opened and the champions entered the room. The first one Bill saw, standing just outside the chamber, was Cedric Diggory, who was politely holding the door open for someone out of Bill's sight.

The first champion to actually enter was a blonde girl with the most remarkable blue eyes Bill had ever seen. She had a petite body and moved around like a queen. Bill couldn't help but think that she knew everyone's attention went towards her. And she certainly deserved as much attention as she could get. _She must be the Beauxbatons champion Ron keeps babbling about in his letters,_ thought Bill.

Cedric followed the girl in and waved to Bill and his Mum. The third champion to appear was Viktor Krum. Bill had to smile when he remembered his brother obsessing over Krum during the Quidditch World Cup. However, from what Bill could tell from Ron's letters, his opinion about Krum had had a dramatic change. 

Mrs. Weasley approached Cedric and his parents and asked about Harry's whereabouts. In a minute, Cedric had stuck his head outside the chamber to fetch Harry for her. Bill smiled. His mum certainly had a way with ordering people around. Which was probably why she was able to handle the twins. Or was it the other way around? Had she had to learn how to order people around in order to handle the twins?

Bill shook his head clear and next thing he knew Harry had entered the chamber, a puzzled look on his face.

"Surprise!" Mrs. Weasley said excitedly, as Harry caught sight of them and smiled broadly, walking over to them. "Thought we'd come and watch you, Harry!" She bent down and kissed him on the cheek. Harry seemed embarrassed and pleased at the same time.

"You all right?" said Bill, grinning at Harry reassuringly and shaking his hand. "Charlie wanted to come, but he couldn't get time off. He said you were incredible against the Horntail."

Bill noticed that Harry was eyeing something over his own shoulder, and the burning sensation that he could feel on the back of his neck told him that someone was eyeing him. Bill wondered for a moment who that might be, when he remembered that the blonde girl – Fleur Delacour, according to Ron's letters – was standing behind him with her family. But he quickly dismissed this possibility, since nice girls like her were never interested in guys with bad-boy looks like him. Like his mum enjoyed so much to point out every time she saw him in order to try and convince him to cut his hair or lose the fang dangling from his ear.

"This is really nice of you," Harry was muttering to Mrs. Weasley. "I thought for a moment – the Dursleys – " 

"Hmm," said Mrs. Weasley, her eyes flashing.

Bill recognised that look in his mum's eyes, and decided to change the subject for Harry's sake. "It's great being back here," he said, looking around the Chamber trying to come up with something else to talk about. "Haven't seen this place for five years," he said, stalling for more time. Suddenly, Bill had an idea, thankfully to Violet winking at him from her frame. "Is that picture of the mad knight still around? Sir Cadogan?" Bill had always been fascinated by the paintings at Hogwarts. They had met many generations of Hogwarts students, and had seen many changes to the wizarding world, and as such, had many stories to share. 

"Oh, yeah," said Harry. Bill smiled. Being the curious person that he was, Bill had always been a willingly listener, and Sir Cadogan always had the coolest stories to tell, even if they weren't entirely truthful.

"And the Fat Lady?" said Bill, remembering with fondness the guardian of Gryffindor Tower.

"She was here in my time," said Mrs. Weasley, interrupting Bill's reminiscences. "She gave me such a telling-off one night when I got back to the dormitory at four in the morning – "

"What were you doing out of your dormitory at four in the morning?" said Bill, impulsively. His MOTHER had been out of bonds, breaking rules? If only his brothers, especially the twins, knew about this...

Mrs. Weasley grinned, her eyes twinkling with mischief. The same mischief Bill often saw in the twins' eyes. _So,_ he thought, _I guess I found out after whom Fred and George took their mischief._

"Your father and I had been for a night-time stroll," his mother was saying. "He got caught by Apollyon Pringle – he was the caretaker in those days – your father's still got the marks."

Bill winced. He had been "disciplined" once by Argus Filch, before the old methods had been banned, when he was just a Third Year. "Fancy giving us a tour, Harry?" said Bill, quickly changing the subject once again.

"Yeah, OK," said Harry, and they made their way towards the door to go back into the Great Hall.

As they passed Amos Diggory, he looked around. "There you are, are you?" he said, looking at Harry up and down. "Bet you're not feeling quite as full of yourself now Cedric's caught you up on points, are you?"

"What?" said Harry, looking confusedly at Mr. Diggory. Bill felt sorry for the boy. He remembered Mr. Diggory far too well from his childhood. He knew the man could be quite bigheaded when he wanted to.

Cedric whispered something that looked apologetic to Harry as he frowned at his father's words.

"Didn't bother to correct her, though, did he?" said Amos Diggory, loudly enough for Harry, Mrs. Weasley and Bill hear as they walked out of the door. "Still... you'll show him, Ced. Beaten him once before, haven't you?"

"Rita Skeeter goes out of her way to cause trouble, Amos!" Mrs. Weasley told her long time friend. Had she really adopted Harry as her son or what? "I would have thought you'd know that, working at the Ministry!"

Mr. Diggory looked as thought he was going to say something nasty, but his wife laid a hand on his arm to restrain him. He shrugged and turned away.

After they left that chamber, Harry led them to the grounds. He showed them the Beauxbatons carriage, which impressed Bill with its size, and the ship from Durmstrang School.

Rounding a corner, they found themselves facing the Whomping Willow. Bill smiled. The number of times he and his friends had dared each other to approach that tree without getting thumped on by it... None of them had ever made it to the trunk.

Mrs. Weasley was curious about the tree, which had been planted after she had left school. She seemed really concerned about how much trouble Hagrid had to treat it, which led her to reminisce - at length - about the gamekeeper from her time, a man called Ogg. But Bill wasn't really listening to her. The memory of his friends' dares to get to the trunk unscathed reminded Bill of one of the reasons he had decided to work as a curse breaker at Gringotts.

Bill loved challenges. He had always loved them, being physical challenges or intellectual ones, but especially the last kind. It was not a wonder that he liked to play chess and was pretty good at it too, something only Ron could surpass him at. Bill sometimes joked that he should never have taught him how to play chess. 

And this love for challenges was one of the reasons why Bill had always been a good student. Simply because he had always felt eager to learn, always wanted to be as perfect as possible in anything he did. So, that had not only made him a very hardworking student, but also one with great grades, which ultimately made him Head Boy and a very skilled grown-up wizard.

"How's Percy?" Harry asked, interrupting Bill's thoughts just as they were walking around the greenhouses.

"Not good," said Bill. He felt sorry for Percy. Being questioned by the Unspeakables shouldn't be a very pleasant experience.

"He's very upset," said Mrs. Weasley, her worry with Percy very clear in her voice. "The Ministry want to keep Mr. Crouch's disappearance quiet, but Percy's been hauled in for questioning about the instructions Mr. Crouch has been sending in. They seem to think there's a chance they weren't genuinely written by him. Percy's been under a lot of strain. They're not letting him fill in for Mr. Crouch as the fifth judge tonight. Cornelius Fudge is going to be doing it."

Bill's face clouded. He had disliked Cornelius Fudge since well before his nomination for Minister of Magic. He couldn't help but remember one of the visits to his father in the Ministry, when he and his mother had accidentally overheard Fudge saying that his father lacked proper wizarding pride. Bill had been so angered by that that only Mrs. Weasley had been able to stop him before he did anything to embarrass his father.

After a while longer walking around, they turned to the castle for lunch.

***

Once they were seated at the Gryffindor table, Bill looked around at the Great Hall. It looked exactly like he remembered, except that none of the few students already sitting on the House tables for lunch was familiar to Bill. But the Enchanted Ceiling was there, as well as the Staff table with Dumbledore seated at the centre of it, flanked on both sides by Hogwarts Professors.

Bill frowned. There were a couple of them he didn't recognise, but before he could ask Harry about who they were, he heard his younger brother's voice.

"Mum – Bill!" Ron asked surprised as he approached. "What're you doing here?"

"Come to watch Harry in the last task!" Mrs. Weasley said animatedly. "I must say, it makes a lovely change, not having to cook. How was your exam?"

"Oh..." His younger brother's face fell, but he quickly recovered. "Okay. Couldn't remember all the goblin rebels' names, so I invented a few. It's all right," Ron missed his mother's stern look, so intent he was on the Cornish pasty. "They're all called stuff like Bodrod the Bearded and Urg the Unclean, it wasn't hard."

Fred, George and Ginny joined them shortly afterwards. Bill noticed that Ginny still looked taken with Harry, blushing a little when joining them, but at least she didn't knock anything over because of him anymore.

Turning to the twins, Bill asked, "George, who is that, er, rather large woman with the olive-skinned face?"

"That's Madame Maxime. She is the Beauxbatons Headmistress, and apparently Hagrid is quite smitten with her," George answered with a grin.

"They would make quite an, er, interesting couple, don't you think?" Fred added, his eyes full of mirth.

Bill quirked an eyebrow up. "Not as interesting as their children would be," a smirk on his face. "I suppose that means the man with sleek hair and a goatee is the Durmstrang Headmaster, then?" 

"Yeah," Fred answered, "Karkaroff."

Bill had the distinct impression that he had seen Karkaroff's face somewhere before, and by hearing his name such feeling just increased. Bill knew him; he just couldn't remember from where.

He was so concentrated on his food and his thoughts that he only noticed Hermione joining then halfway through lunch when Molly greeted her, more stiffly than usual.

"Hello, Hermione." 

"Hello." Hermione's smile faltered.

Bill was looking at his mum, wondering why she was acting that way, when Harry spoke. "Mrs. Weasley, you didn't believe that rubbish Rita Skeeter wrote in _Witch Weekly_, did you? Because Hermione's not my girlfriend."

"Oh! No – of course I didn't," Mrs. Weasley said. But Bill noticed the tips of her ears redden a bit in shame. 

After lunch, once again Harry took Mrs. Weasley and Bill to the grounds. Bill assumed that Harry's eagerness to stay outside had something to do with wanting to stay away from the oppressiveness he was probably feeling inside the Castle with such a grand thing looming over his head. 

Bill welcomed the sunny afternoon. It would be hilarious if it wasn't sad, but even living in Egypt Bill rarely spent time under the sun. Most of his time he was indoors, either at Gringotts Bank with his nose upon heaps and heaps of parchment with possible clues to any kind of treasure he could find for the Goblins, or at some hidden chamber full of treasures, Curses, and sometimes even Dark Magic.

The day passed by quite fast, and soon they were back again at the Great Hall for the evening feast. At the Staff table they could now see Ludo Bagman and Cornelius Fudge.

Bill didn't remember having had such a great dinner during his days at Hogwarts. There was a great variety of food, and each one surpassed the previous in taste. The House Elves had really outdone themselves this time.

During dinner, Bill noticed that Harry hardly ate anything. _Probably worried about the Task tonight,_ thought Bill.

Looking at the other champions, Bill noticed that Viktor Krum was quietly eating his dinner, while occasionally nodding at something his mother and father said. Cedric was happily talking with his parents, and eating all the food that appeared upon the Hufflepuff table; he was by far the most confident of the champions. And Fleur Delacour just kept playing with her food, much like Harry. From time to time, she would speak a few words to her Mum, only smiling when she spoke to a little girl with white-blond hair that could only be her sister. The girl was sitting in front of her and making a mess with the food, apparently not very eager to eat it.

Bill smiled at the child and when he looked back again at Fleur, she was eyeing him with surprise and laughter in her eyes. Bill felt his neck redden slightly, and acknowledged Fleur with a nod of his head.

"Ladies and gentlemen," Dumbledore caught everybody's attention, "in five minutes' time, I will be asking you to make your way down to the Quidditch pitch for the third and last task of the Triwizard Tournament. Will the champions please follow Mr. Bagman down to the stadium now."

There was applause all around the Great Hall as the champions got up. When Bill looked back at Fleur's place at the Ravenclaw table, he found out that she had already left. He quickly wished Harry good luck, before he left too.

After all the champions had gone, no one at the Great Hall seemed interested in the food anymore. The Hall was filled by the buzzing of hundreds of students excitedly talking about the final task of the Triwizard Tournament.

Exactly five minutes later, Dumbledore rose again and told the students that they were now allowed to follow the champions to the Quidditch pitch. He didn't need to tell them twice.

***

When they got to the Quidditch pitch, Bill thought once again how badly his brother Charlie would overreact if he saw what had been done to his beloved Quidditch field. They couldn't see the whole pitch from where they were, but Bill had caught a good glimpse at it when he and Hagrid had placed the sphinx inside it. There was a twenty-foot-high hedge covering all the way around the edge of what had once been the smooth, flat, and grass-covered Quidditch field. Except for the entrance to the maze, which faced the stands.

The Weasleys and Hermione made their way up to the middle of the stands. Bill sat with his mother on his right side and the twins and Ginny on his left side, while Ron and Hermione sat in front of them. Once everyone was seated, they noticed Professors Moody, McGonagall, Flitwick and Hagrid, all wearing luminous red stars, taking places around the hedge, probably to patrol it. The other teachers were seated at the bottom of the stand right in front of them. Dumbledore sat in the middle of them, with Fudge by his side.

"Ladies and gentlemen, the third and final task of the Triwizard Tournament is about to begin!" Mr. Bagman's voice suddenly roared over the noisy crowd. "Let me remind you how the points currently stand! Tied in first place, with eighty-five points each – Mr. Cedric Diggory and Mr. Harry Potter, both of Hogwarts School!" Deafening applause followed. "In second place, with eighty points – Mr. Viktor Krum, of Durmstrang Institute!" More applause. "And in third place – Miss Fleur Delacour, of Beauxbatons Academy!" There was only some scattered applause, and by the end of it Harry had seen them on the stands. He waved at them and they waved back.

"So...on my whistle, Harry and Cedric!" said Bagman. "Three – two – one – " Bagman gave a short blast on his whistle, and Harry and Cedric entered the maze. After a few minutes, it was Viktor Krum's turn and, at last, Fleur Delacour's turn.

The four champions were inside the Maze now. The only thing the audience could do was wait until one of them got to the Cup and won.

Bill made himself as comfortable as possible in the stands. This would take a while.


	2. Chapter 2: Watching

**Crossing Ways**

_Author's note: Ok, I didn't thank any of the people who have helped me writing and improving this fic in the first chapter *hangs head in shame*, so, I'm going to do so now. I'd like to thank Manu for putting up with me and my crazy ideas and ramblings over this fic, as well as helping me turning them into something readable. I'd also like to thanks Lallybroch for reading this and checking for any grammar mistakes I made, as well as giving me such nice compliments on chapter one - and even nicer ones on chapter two - that I still have a goofy grin __on my face over both. This chapter is dedicated to you both, girls. :)_

Chapter 2: Watching

It had been almost an hour since the last champion had entered the maze. The students were getting restless and as such, all around the stands you could see small groups of the older ones talking, while the younger students were beginning to show signs of sleepiness.

Bill noticed that Fleur's little sister, the youngest one in the stands, was already sleeping in her mother's arms. Madame Maxime whispered something to Fleur's mother, who nodded and got up, heading to the Beauxbatons carriage.

"Do you think Harry's all right, Ron? I don't think he had a good grip on the Stun and Impediment spells yet," Bill heard Hermione speaking nervously to Ron.

Ron awkwardly placed his hand on Hermione's shoulder. "He'll be all right, you taught him well, Hermione." Ron's ears were a bright shade of pink. "I know. I was at the receiving end of his spells quite enough during his practice."

Hermione looked up at Ron, her cheeks a bit tainted by the cold air of the night. _Or maybe by something else,_ thought Bill, smiling slightly.

"And you were quite helpful, Ron, but I should have let Harry train on me a bit too when you were tired of getting stunned, instead of rushing to the next spell." She looked at her hands. "I think I just didn't want to be thrown backwards on the floor."

Ron breathed as he was about to say something, but he never did, because a scream pierced through the night.

Everybody was immediately silent around the maze, exchanging worried glances with one another. Bill looked for Professor McGonagall, Moody, Flitwick and Hagrid, who had been patrolling the maze during the task, and soon he caught a glimpse of Moody and McGonagall approaching the Maze's entrance.

When they came closer, a limp form could be seen on Professor Moody's arm.

A blond-haired one.

Madame Maxime and Professor Dumbledore approached them. After what seemed like a quick disagreement between Madame Maxime and Madam Pomfrey, Madame Maxime charmed a stretcher out of thin air to place Fleur on and headed to their carriage.

Professor Dumbledore turned to the anxious-looking crowd. "Miss Delacour tried to go through a Stun Wall – " _which is much stronger than a regular Stunning spell and as such can't be counter-acted with an Enervate spell,_ thought Bill, "– and was knocked out. She is well, despite the fact that she is Stunned, and will awake in a couple of hours. Therefore, she is disqualified from the Triwizard Tournament."

Dumbledore had just finished saying that when red sparks came up from the Maze. Hagrid immediately went towards the spot they had marked, and disappeared down the maze. A few minutes later, he left the maze carrying another student in his arms.

"Viktor!" yelled Hermione, getting up with the clear intention of going towards the Durmstrang champion.

However, seeing Ron's dark look in her direction, Hermione restrained herself and slowly sat back down. Bill couldn't help but smirk. He remembered his first attempts trying to figure out girls, and he felt sorry for his brother. Without a clue about what the girls around him wanted – not that it improved with time – or why they acted a certain way around certain girls. 

Well, at least Ron seemed to be learning. Bill recognised that look on his face as one from someone fighting hard against his instincts. And by the looks of it, Ron's instinct was to make some nasty remark.

Looking back at the people standing near the entrance of the maze, Bill saw Karkaroff carrying Krum away, the boy's parents with him.

Dumbledore's voice rang over the chattering crowd again. "Mr. Viktor Krum has also been disqualified from the Tournament. Now we only have Mr. Diggory and Mr. Potter on the run for Triwizard Champion."

"Yeah! Either way it'll be a Hogwarts victory!" Bill heard someone shout. He looked at Dumbledore, wondering if he would find at least a tiny hint of pride in his wizened eyes. 

There was no such thing. Bill should have known; Dumbledore was one of the most humble people in the world.

Dumbledore quietly talked to McGonagall, Hagrid and Moody. Before long they were once again around the maze, patrolling it just as they had been doing earlier, but with more urgency this time. 

Soon McGonagall and Moody were back from their watching spots over the maze. Bill paid attention to them hoping to get some news on how Harry and Cedric were going along.

"The Cup is still on its place, Dumbledore. Potter and Diggory must be still trying to sort out the maze," Moody informed.

"I saw Potter walking down one of the paths midway towards the Cup, Albus. And Hagrid told me he saw Mr.Diggory as well," McGonagall said.

Dumbledore nodded. "Thank you, Professors. You may return to your watching spots now."

Half an hour passed without anything happening. Most people on the stands were already looking tired and bored by now. Ginny was sleeping with her head on George's shoulder, her brow creased and her face very white against his black robe. George had his left arm across her back, and was holding her to his side. Fred was seated next to Ginny, and was talking animatedly with a pretty black girl next to him.

Molly's yawn from his other side caught Bill's attention. He smiled at his mum.

But the sound of a shuddering gasp turned his attention back to the twins. Ginny had woken up suddenly, and her face was almost as white as a ghost's. Her hands were shaking when she removed her hair from her eyes. George squeezed her left shoulder. "Are you all right, sis?"

Ginny looked at his brother, her eyes unfocused for a moment. It took her a while to answer. "Yes," she whispered. "It was just…just a nightmare."

Fred interrupted his conversation to look worriedly at his little sister. "You haven't had one of those since…"

"I know, Fred," Ginny snapped. "But this one…was different." She blanched even more. "I think I'm just worried about Harry, that's all."

"Don't you want to go up to your dormitory, Ginny? You don't look well, I don't think the night's cold did you much good. Besides, you were already sleeping here, it would be not only warmer but also cosier at your dormitory." Mrs. Weasley said.

Ginny looked up at her mum with a small smile on her lips. "Yes, I think I will do just that, Mum."

"Do you want me to go with you up to the castle?" asked Bill, concerned. He remembered far too well the reason for Ginny's nightmares two years before.

"I'll go with her, Bill," said George, standing up. 

Fred also stood up. "Me too. Angelina, do you want to come with us or stay here?"

"No, I'll go with you," the pretty girl that had been talking to Fred answered.

The small group bid Mrs. Weasley, Bill, Ron and Hermione goodnight and left.

Bill followed them up to the castle with his eyes. He was worried about Ginny. Ever since his parents had told him about Tom Riddle's Diary and how little Ginny had opened the Chamber of Secrets under its influence… Not to mention the nightmares Ginny started to have during that episode. Bill clenched his teeth in anger when he thought about it. 

It was not long before Ginny and the others had left that a commotion started to take place at the other end of the stands.

"That was Harry, wasn't it?" Hermione asked Ron, worried.

"Yeah, I think so. And he looked unconscious." Ron was already halfway down the stands, Hermione right behind him.

Bill looked at the place where the Professors had been sitting, and noticed that Dumbledore and Fudge weren't there. He got up and turned to Mrs. Weasley to ask her to wait while he found out what was happening.

Or at least that was what he wanted to do.

When he looked at where she had been sitting, Bill found the spot empty. "Mum?"

Bill looked over the agitated crowd, and found his mother running past Ron. _She's quite fast for her age,_ thought Bill, as he pushed through the crowd after her. When they got to the source of the commotion, they saw the Diggorys crying over someone's body.

Cedric's body.

Bill just stood there, unsure of what to do. His mother had kneeled next to Mrs. Diggory and placed her hand on her shoulder. Mrs. Diggory turned to her, and both friends hugged. Mr. Diggory was crying uncontrollably over his dead son's chest.

Someone touched his shoulder. "Bill."

It was Ron. His eyes were focused on Cedric, and he looked rather pale. "Professor Flitwick told me he saw Professor Moody taking Harry to the Hospital Wing."

***

Once Mrs. Weasley felt she had comforted Mrs. and Mr. Diggory as much as she possibly could, the Weasleys and Hermione set off to the castle.

However, when they got to the Hospital Wing, Harry was nowhere to be found.

"Where is he? What happened to Harry?" Ron asked, almost out of breath after running through Hogwarts staircases and corridors.

"If you are looking for Mr. Potter, he isn't here, Mr. Weasley," Madam Pomfrey answered briskly.

"How can he not be here? He was unconscious, probably hurt! Why isn't he here?" Mrs. Weasley demanded.

Madam Pomfrey repeated, "He isn't here. Now, this is a Hospital Wing, you can't just come in here and start shouting like this…"

"But Professor Flitwick told us he would be here," cried Hermione. "Where is Harry? What happened to him?"

"Madam Pomfrey, have you seen Harry at all after the Third Task?" Bill asked calmly, trying to gather at least some piece of information from the harassed looking and increasingly irritated nurse before they were all kicked out for being so loud.

"Harry! Oh, Harry!"

Bill turned from Madam Pomfrey to his mother, who was running towards a weary-looking Harry that had just entered the room accompanied by Professor Dumbledore. Before she could reach him, however, Dumbledore came to stand in front of her. "Molly," he said, effectively silencing her with his hand raised, "please listen to me for a moment. Harry has been through a terrible ordeal tonight. He has just had to relive it for me. What he needs now is sleep, and peace, and quiet. If he would like you all to stay with him," Dumbledore looked at Bill, Ron and Hermione, "you may do so. But I do not want you questioning him until he is ready to answer, and certainly not this evening."

Mrs. Weasley nodded. She was very white, but that didn't prevent her from rounding on her children. "Did you hear? He needs quiet!"

Bill forced back down a chuckle that had threatened to leave his lips at his Mum's antics.

"Headmaster," said Madam Pomfrey, "May I ask what -?" She was looking at a large black dog Bill didn't know how he had missed before.

"This dog will be remaining with Harry for a while," said Dumbledore simply. "I assure you, he is extremely well-trained." Dumbledore turned to Harry. "Harry – I will wait while you get into bed. I will be back to see you as soon as I have met with Fudge, Harry. I would like you to remain here tomorrow, until I have spoken to the school." Dumbledore left.

Harry followed Madam Pomfrey behind the Infirmary's screen, changed his clothes for pyjamas, and got into bed. Bill followed Ron, Hermione, his Mum and the black dog - that looked uncharacteristically harmless, taken his size - around the screen, and they settled themselves in chairs on either side of him.

"I'm all right. Just tired," said Harry.

Molly unnecessarily smoothed the bedcovers, her eyes filled with tears.

Madam Pomfrey came back holding a goblet containing what Bill recognised as a strong Sleeping Draught. "You'll need to drink all of this, Harry. It's a potion for dreamless sleep."

Harry had drunk only half the Goblet when he fell back onto his pillow, sound asleep.

"If you need me, I will be in my office," Madam Pomfrey said and left.

"What do you think happened?" asked Ron, after a few minutes.

"Shh. Haven't you heard Professor Dumbledore? Harry needs to rest. We can find out what happened later," hissed Mrs.Weasley in an angry voice.

And so, they fell into a silent watch over Harry. 


	3. Chapter 3: At the Hospital Wing

**Crossing Ways**

_Author's Note: This chapter was at the same time easy and hard for me to write. It was easy because the dialogue was already written by JKR, but it was also hard because I wanted to write something that actually ADDED to the story. Anyone can copy down a dialogue; I wanted to make it different. I tried to accomplish that by showing Bill's point of view. I hope you guys like it! :)_

Oh, and at last but CERTAINLY not least: **JUNE 21st**! YEAH, baby! *Happy Snoopy Dance* :)

Chapter 3: At the Hospital Wing

Bill ran his fingers through his hair, trying to make his brain stop thinking over everything that had happened and that might have happened that night. It would do him no good to conjure up all kinds of absurd explanations for something that he would probably find all about it the following morning.

Looking around, Bill noticed that Professor Moody was lying on one of the beds at the far end of the room. He frowned. But before he could say anything, loud voices could be heard coming from the outside corridor. 

"They'll wake him if they don't shut up!" Mrs. Weasley whispered.

"What are they shouting about? Nothing else can have happened, can it?" Bill asked, unsure.

Mrs. Weasley was quickly on her feet. "That's Fudge's voice. And that's Minerva McGonagall's, isn't it? But what are they arguing about?"

"Regrettable, but all the same, Minerva – " Fudge was practically yelling.

"You should never have brought it inside the castle! When Dumbledore finds out – "

The doors of the hospital wing burst open, and Bill pulled back the screens around Harry's bed to see Mr. Fudge striding up the ward. Professor McGonagall and Snape were right behind him.

"Where's Dumbledore?" Fudge demanded of Mrs. Weasley. Bill looked over Fudge's shoulder and saw Madam Pomfrey leaving her office. At the sight of Fudge, she gasped, turned on her heels, and left the room altogether.

"He's not here. This is a hospital wing, Minister, don't you think you'd do better to – "

The door opened and Dumbledore came sweeping up the ward, Madam Pomfrey following him a bit behind.

"What has happened?" said Dumbledore sharply, looking from Fudge to Minerva. "Why are you disturbing these people? Minerva, I'm surprised at you – I asked you to stand guard over Barty Crouch – "

Bill was confused for a moment. Barty Crouch? Percy's boss who had disappeared?

"There is no need to stand guard over him any more, Dumbledore!" she screeched. "The Minister has seen to that!" Professor McGonagall was trembling with fury, her cheeks reddened, and her hands forcefully closed as if to prevent her from taking out her anger at Fudge.

"When we told Mr. Fudge that we had caught the Death Eater responsible for tonight's events," Bill almost gasped at Snape's softly spoken words. A Death Eater? "He seemed to feel his personal safety was in question. He insisted on summoning a Dementor to accompany him into the castle. He brought it up to the office where Barty Crouch – "

McGonagall and Fudge's screaming faded out to the background as Bill thought hard trying to make some sense out of it all. Barty Crouch? The former Death Eater Inquisitor and Executioner who had been missing for months? This didn't make any sense… Barty Crouch would NEVER become a Death Eater…

As realisation damned on him, Bill felt as though a bucket of ice-cold water had fallen on him. They couldn't possibly be talking about Barty Crouch _Junior, could they? Hadn't he died at Azkaban?_

Bill shook his head and tried to focus on the discussion about Dementors and Barty Crouch taking place in front of him. Apparently Crouch was not only alive but he also seemed to be the Death Eater he had been accused of being once. Bill couldn't help but remember the quiet boy with straw-coloured hair a few years older than him that he had met at Hogwarts. A boy so unlikely to harm even a Cornish pixie let alone the entire wizarding community.

"The moment that – that thing entered the room," McGonagall's screams cut through Bill's thoughts, "it swooped down on Crouch and – and – "

Bill froze. The Dementor's Kiss. One of the fouler if not foulest destinies to any person, wizard or not, bad or good.

"By all accounts, he is no loss! It seems he has been responsible for several deaths!"

"But he cannot now give testimony, Cornelius," said Dumbledore as he looked intently at Fudge. "He cannot give evidence about why he killed those people."

"Why he killed them? " Fudge said stridently. "Well, that's no mystery, is it? He was a raving lunatic! From what Minerva and Severus told me, he seems to have thought he was doing it all on You-Know-Who's instructions!"

"Lord Voldemort _was_ giving him instructions, Cornelius," Dumbledore said, too seriously for Bill's liking. "Those people's deaths were mere by-products of a plan to restore Voldemort to full strength again. The plan succeeded. Voldemort has been restored to his body."

This time around, Bill gasped. You-Know-Who was back? _Alive?_ If Dumbledore said so, it had to be true, but even so… Bill found it a bit hard to believe. Or rather, he didn't _want_ to believe it.

"You-Know-Who…returned?" Fudge stammered. "Preposterous. Come now, Dumbledore…"

"As Minerva and Severus have doubtless told you, we heard Barty Crouch confess. Under the influence of Veritaserum, he told us how he was smuggled out of Azkaban, – "

_Well,_ thought Bill, _that explains part of it._

" – and how Voldemort – learning of his continued existence from Bertha Jorkins – went to free him from his father, and used him to capture Harry. The plan worked, I tell you. Crouch has helped Voldemort to return."

"See here, Dumbledore," Fudge gave that small and superior smile of his that Bill disliked so much. It was the same smile Fudge sometimes used when dealing with his father. "You – you can't seriously believe that. You-Know-Who – back? Come now, come now… certainly, Crouch may have _believed_ himself to be acting upon You-Know-Who's orders – but to take the word of a lunatic like that, Dumbledore…"

"When Harry touched the Triwizard Cup tonight, he was transported straight to Voldemort. He witnessed Lord Voldemort's rebirth. I will explain it all to you if you will step up to my office." Dumbledore glanced around at the Weasleys and Hermione and shook his head at Fudge. "I am afraid I cannot permit you to question Harry tonight."

Fudge's superior smile lingered as he too surveyed the room before looking back at Dumbledore. "You are – er – prepared to take Harry's word on this, are you, Dumbledore?"

There was silence for a moment, except for the dog's growling. You could feel the tension in the room as if you could cut it with a knife. Even the dog was showing his displeasure at Fudge by barring its teeth at him.

 "Certainly I believe Harry." Dumbledore's eyes were burning. "I heard Crouch's confession, and I heard Harry's account of what happened after he touched the Triwizard Cup; the two stories make sense, they explain everything that has happened since Bertha Jorkins disappeared last summer."

Fudge was still smiling as he glanced around again. "You are prepared to believe that Lord Voldemort has returned, on the word of a lunatic murderer and a boy who…well…" He looked pointedly at Harry's bed this time.

"You've been reading Rita Skeeter, Mr. Fudge." Bill jumped when he heard Harry's voice. He hadn't realised that Harry had woken up, and by the looks of it, neither had his Mum, Ron or Hermione.

Fudge's face blemished faintly with shame, but his eyes took an insolent and stubborn look. "And if I have?" he said, staring at Dumbledore. "If I have discovered that you've been keeping certain facts about the boy very quiet? A Parselmouth, eh? And having funny turns all over the place – "

"I assume that you are referring to the pains Harry has been experiencing in his scar?" Dumbledore asked, evenly.

"You admit that he has been having these pains, then? Headaches? Nightmares? Possibly – hallucinations?"

Bill was instantly reminded of Ginny and her nightmares. Was it possible that the nightmare she had had earlier that night…?

"Listen to me, Cornelius," Dumbledore shortened the distance between himself and Fudge, "Harry is as sane as you or I. That scar upon his forehead has not addled his brains. I believe it hurts him when Lord Voldemort is close by, or feeling particularly murderous."

Fudge backed away from Dumbledore, but continued obstinately. "You'll forgive me, Dumbledore, but I've never heard of a curse scar acting as an alarm bell before…"

"Look, I saw Voldemort come back!" Harry yelled and made a move to get off bed, but Mrs. Weasley didn't let him. "I saw the Death Eaters! I can give you their names! Lucius Malfoy – "

"Malfoy was cleared!" said Fudge as if he had been insulted. "A very old family – donations to excellent causes – "

Bill heard his younger brother snorting.

"MacNair!"

"Also cleared! Now working for the Ministry!"

"Avery – Nott – Crabbe – Goyle – "

"You are merely repeating the names of those who were acquitted of being Death Eaters thirteen years ago!" said Fudge angrily. "You could have found those names in old reports of the trials! For heaven's sake, Dumbledore – the boy was full of some crackpot story at the end of last year, too – his tales are getting taller, and you're still swallowing them – the boy can talk to snakes, Dumbledore, and you still think he's trustworthy?"

"You fool!" McGonagall cried. "Cedric Diggory! Mr. Crouch! These deaths were not the random work of a lunatic!"

"I see no evidence to the contrary!" hollered Fudge, his face mottled with increasing anger. "It seems to me that you are all determined to start a panic that will destabilise everything we have worked for these last thirteen years!"

Bill was fuming. Mr. Weasley had mentioned, on rare occasions, that Fudge was a typical politician, so worried about himself and his political image that he worried very little with the Wizardry community itself. The fact that Voldemort had risen again was a sure thing to shake the very grounds on which the Ministry of Magic stood. And Fudge looked ready to dismiss Voldemort's return as merely a rumour just because he didn't want to risk the Ministry that he had helped built after the war.

"Voldemort has returned. If you accept that fact straight away, Fudge, and take the necessary measures, we may still be able to save the situation. The first and most essential step is to remove Azkaban from the control of the Dementors – "

"Preposterous! Remove the Dementors! I'd be kicked out of office for suggesting it! Half of us only feel safe in our beds at night because we know the Dementors are standing guard at Azkaban!"

"The rest of us sleep less soundly in our beds, Cornelius, knowing that you have put Lord Voldemort's most dangerous supporters in the care of creatures who will join him the instant he asks them! They will not remain loyal to you, Fudge! Voldemort can offer them much more scope for their powers and their pleasures than you can! With the Dementors behind him, and his old supporters returned to him, you will be hard pressed to stop him regaining the sort of power he had thirteen years ago!"

Fudge was opening and closing his mouth like a fish outside water. He obviously didn't know what to say.

"The second step you must take – and at once – is to send envoys to the giants."

"Envoys to the giants?" Fudge screeched. "What madness is this?"

"Extend them the hand of friendship, now, before it is too late, or Voldemort will persuade them, as he did before, that he alone among wizards will give them their rights and their freedom!"

"You – you cannot be serious!" Fudge huffed and stepped further away from Dumbledore. "If the magical community got wind that I had approached the giants – people hate them Dumbledore – end of my career – "

"You are blinded," Dumbledore's voice was mounting up now, his eyes radiating once more with his inner magical power, "by the love of the office you hold, Cornelius! You place too much importance, and you always have done, on the so-called purity of blood! You fail to recognise that it matters not what someone is born, but what they grow to be! Your Dementor has just destroyed the last remaining member of a pure-blood family as old as any – and see what that man chose to make of his life! I tell you now – take the steps I have suggested, and you will be remembered, in office or out, as one of the bravest and greatest Ministers of Magic we have ever known. Fail to act – and history will remember you as the man who stepped aside, and allowed Voldemort a second chance to destroy the world we have tried to rebuild!"

"Insane," murmured Fudge, still receding from Dumbledore. "Mad…"

Silence followed. Bill was staring hard at Fudge, thinking that if all Fudge really cared about was his post as Minister of Magic, he might as well stick it up his…

"If your determination to shut your eyes will carry you as far as this, Cornelius," said Dumbledore steadily, "we have reached a parting of the ways. You must act as you see fit. And I – I shall act as I see fit."

"Now, see here, Dumbledore," Fudge said, waving an insolent finger at Dumbledore. "I've given you free rein, always. I've had a lot of respect for you. I might not have agreed with some of your decisions, but I've kept quiet. There aren't many who'd have let you hire werewolves, or keep Hagrid, or decide what to teach your students, without reference to the Ministry. But if you're going to work against me – "

"The only one against whom I intend to work is Lord Voldemort. If you are against him, then we remain, Cornelius, on the same side."

Fudge swayed on the spot he was standing, twirling his bowler hat in his hands. "He can't be back, Dumbledore, he just can't be…" he said at last, as if in supplication.

Snape pulled his left sleeve up and stuck his forearm at Fudge, who recoiled. "There," Snape said severely. On his arm, Bill caught a glimpse of something he couldn't recognise. "There. The Dark Mark. It is not as clear as it was, an hour or so ago, when it burnt black, but you can still see it. Every Death Eater had the sign burnt into him by the Dark Lord. It was a means of distinguishing each other, and his means of summoning us to him. When he touched the Mark of any Death Eater, we were to Disapparate, and Apparate, instantly, at his side. This Mark has been growing clearer all year. Karkaroff's too. Why do you think Karkaroff fled tonight? We both felt the Mark burn. We both knew he had returned. Karkaroff fears the Dark Lord's vengeance. He betrayed too many of his fellow Death Eaters to be sure of a welcome back into the fold."

Bill gulped. He would have never guessed that Snape had been a Death Eater once. Sure, he had always thought that the Potions Master was particularly mean sometimes back in his school days, but never a Death Eater. And if Dumbledore obviously trusted him enough to give him a job, that was all Bill needed to know.

Fudge retreated from Snape, shaking his head. He stared repulsively at the Mark on Snape's arm, and then talked to Dumbledore. "I don't know what you and your staff are playing at, Dumbledore, but I have heard enough. I have no more to add. I will be in touch with you tomorrow, Dumbledore, to discuss the running of this school. I must return to the Ministry."

He went to the door, but before reaching it, turned around and came back up to Harry's bed. "Your winnings," he said presently as he dropped a large bag that he had taken out of his robes' pocket onto Harry's bedside table. "One thousand Galleons. There should have been a presentation ceremony, but in the circumstances…" He stuffed his bowler hat forcefully into his head and left, banging the door on the way out. 

Dumbledore turned to look at the Weasleys and Hermione, with his back to Madam Pomfrey, Professor McGonagall and Professor Snape. "There is work to be done. Molly…am I right in thinking that I can count on you and Arthur?"

"Of course you can," Bill heard his Mum speaking determinedly. He looked at her and was surprised to see that Mrs. Weasley's face was incredibly pale. "He knows what Fudge is. It's Arthur's fondness for Muggles that has held him back at the Ministry all these years. Fudge thinks he lacks proper wizarding pride."

Bill clenched his teeth in anger.

  
"Then I need to send a message to him. All those that we can persuade of the truth must be notified immediately, and Arthur is well placed to contact those at the Ministry who are not as short-sighted as Cornelius."

Bill knew what he had to do. "I'll go to Dad," he said, standing up. "I'll go now."

"Excellent. Tell him what has happened. Tell him I will be in direct contact with him shortly. He will need to be discreet, however. If Fudge thinks I am interfering at the Ministry – "

Bill understood. "Leave it to me."

He clapped a hand on Harry's shoulder, kissed his mother on the cheek, pulled on his cloak, and strode quickly from the room. Acting as fast as they could was of uttermost importance under their current circumstances.


	4. Chapter 4: Concerning the Past and the F...

**Crossing Ways**

_"I don't like people who attack when their opponent's back's turned," growled Moody, as the ferret bounced _

_higher and higher, squealing in pain. "Stinking, cowardly, scummy thing to do..."_

~ page 181, **Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire**

Chapter 4: Concerning the Past and the Future

Bill left the Hospital Wing with his mind so full of everything that had just transpired between Professor Dumbledore and Cornelius Fudge and the implications, that he didn't see the girl rounding the corner and coming straight towards him, causing them to bump into each other.

"Sorry," said Bill, who automatically reached for the girl's arm to help her recover her balance and not fall down. When he finally looked down at her, Bill was surprised.

It was Fleur Delacour, and she looked completely distressed. Her eyes were wide, her hair was in disarray, and her cheeks were flushed red. She was breathing with difficulty, like she had just run a mile. In summary, completely different from the girl he had seen earlier that day, and certainly different from the pale looking and passed out girl that had been taken from the Maze.

" 'Arry... Is 'Arry all right?" she asked, her eyes searching Bill's but really not focusing on anything. She unconsciously rested her forearms on Bill's chest.

"Harry's fine. He had a hard time but he's resting now." Bill said, trying to sound as calm as possible under the circumstances.

"You don't understand - It was Professor Moody - I saw 'im before 'e Stunned me!"

Astonished, Bill didn't know what to think. He had known Professor Moody since he was a boy, when he still was a respected Auror. Even though Moody didn't exactly have his head on straight, he surely would never attack someone innocent, let alone a student. Besides, from all that had been said by Professors McGonagall, Snape and Dumbledore, not to mention Cornelius Fudge, Bill had gathered that the culprit responsible for the ordeal Harry had been put through that night was Barty Crouch Jr. 

However, Bill still didn't understand why Moody was laying unconscious on one of the Hospital Wing's beds. He swallowed. 

"Are you sure?" Perhaps she had been hurt more badly than they had thought.

Fleur nodded her head. "Yes."

"But..." Bill still couldn't believe it. "That's impossible. Professor Moody would never attack a student."

"You are both correct." Professor McGonagall's voice startled both of them. Bill spun around, without releasing his grip on Fleur. "Professor?"

Professor McGonagall had her lips pursued. She quickly checked if the classroom beside the Hospital Wing was empty, and ushered both Bill and Fleur inside.

Bill took Fleur to one of the chairs, only releasing her when she was seated. He didn't think she would be able to stand on her own; she was shaking pretty badly. Professor McGonagall looked both ways down the corridor before entering and closing the door.

She sat on the teacher's desk, sighed deeply, and looked from Bill to Fleur as if deciding what to say. Finally, she spoke.

"Yes, Miss Delacour, you did see Professor Moody attacking you. But it wasn't really him. It was a Death Eater using a Polyjuice Potion to look like him. I'm sure you know how a Polyjuice Potion works?"

The girl nodded numbly. The last pieces missing on the puzzle that Bill had carefully put together fell into place.

McGonagall eyed Fleur for a moment. "Well, I need to be going. I'm sorry that I'm not able to inform you of anything else, but Professor Dumbledore will address everyone at Hogwarts when the time is right. And I trust you not to disclose this information to anyone. Both of you." With that McGonagall looked at Bill. "Would you please make sure that Miss Delacour calms down a bit and then take her to the Beauxbatons carriage, Mr. Weasley? If she doesn't calm down, take her to Madam Pomfrey, as Madame Maxime should have allowed when we took her unconscious from the Maze." McGonagall had a scarcely restrained disapproving look on her face. "I have to tend to Dumbledore's request now." And with a last lingering look to both, McGonagall left.

Fleur took a deep breath. Bill watched as she rubbed her temples with her fingers, her eyes closed. She appeared to be deep in thought.

"A Death Eater." She snapped her eyes open. "Does zat mean zat," she gulped, "Zat You-Know-'oo is back?"

"I'm afraid so, yes."

Fleur got a very serious and faraway look on her face, and after a few more minutes, stood up resolutely. "I'm feeling better already." 

She went for the door, but Bill was faster. He opened up the door for her, allowed her to pass, and followed.

They left the castle in silence. When they approached the Beauxbatons carriage, Bill finally spoke up. "Don't worry. Everything will be all right."

"No, it won't." Fleur looked at Bill, her cool stare piercing through his eyes to his very soul. "But we won't go down without putting up a fight." She turned and entered the Beauxbatons carriage, leaving Bill to ponder her words while he crossed the Hogwarts gates and Apparated to find his father and accomplish Dumbledore's request. 

***

Fleur felt she couldn't stand anymore. Thankfully, the young man she had bumped into just before Professor McGonagall arrived supported her. He even took her to a nearby chair inside the empty classroom the Professor pointed out to them. Fleur sat and fidgeted until Professor McGonagall finally spoke after a thoughtful while.

"Yes, Miss Delacour, you did see Professor Moody attacking you. But it wasn't really him. It was a Death Eater using a Polyjuice Potion to look like him. I'm sure you know how a Polyjuice Potion works?"

Fleur nodded numbly, almost reflexively acknowledging the fact that she knew the way a Polyjuice Potion is supposed to work. Her brain was too worried trying to process another bit of info Professor McGonagall had just provided her with. That name. The name that had haunted her dreams ever since she was a small child.

_Death Eater. _

She had been barely five years old when it had happened, but she remembered it quite clear. Fleur wished she didn't.

Tuning out Professor McGonagall's voice, Fleur remembered the morning she had woken up to find her mother crying desperately.

She had crept into her parents' bedroom, trying to find the source of the noise that had woken her up, and climbed onto the bed where her mother was rocking backwards and forwards, clutching a piece of damp parchment on her hands.

_"Maman?"_

It had taken her mother a few minutes to realise that her oldest daughter was next to her, but when she did, she hugged Fleur fiercely against her. Her tears soaked the small girl's hair, and her hold on Fleur had been so tight that the little girl had had trouble breathing.

But what had made her almost stop breathing had been the grieving news her mother had given her in a croaked voice. _"Your father is dead. Killed by Death Eaters."_

She had been a small child, but even the children had been aware of what being dead meant back then. Back when the Dark Lord ruled the wizarding world. 

Her mother had never really accepted his death and many times, during her most grieving moments, she had cursed the day her husband had decided to become an Auror and fight the Dark Lord and his followers.

Fleur took a deep breath and started rubbing her temples in a vain attempt to stop her head from hurting. 

"A Death Eater." She snapped her eyes open, realisation dawning on her. "Does zat mean zat," she gulped in fear, "Zat You-Know-'oo is back?"

"I'm afraid so, yes," came the subdued reply.

Fleur clenched her teeth together. You-Know-Who was back. War, death, and despair were coming upon them. She felt tears threatening to appear at the corner of her eyes, but concentrating on the image of her father, her brave father that had fought against it all, Fleur prevented that. She stood up resolutely. "I'm feeling better already," she said, trying to reassure herself of it.

Fleur went for the door, but the young man next to her was faster. He opened up the door for her, allowed her to pass, and followed.

They left the castle in silence. Fleur was so focused on her thoughts that she barely noticed the young man besides her. When they reached the carriage, he spoke up. "Don't worry. Everything will be all right."

"No, it won't." She looked at the redheaded young man, coolly. She felt like all her sorrow could be seen pouring through her eyes. She remembered her father once again. "But we won't go down without putting up a fight." She turned and entered the carriage, before she lost control and cried.

Once she had gotten inside the carriage, her mother chastised her for running away into the cold night, worried about her health after she had been Stunned. Fleur quickly eased her mother's worries, and crept into her bed.

Her mother didn't understand. Fleur had woken up to the whispers between her and Madame Maxime about Harry Potter's ordeal. As soon as the disorientation she had felt at first cleared, she remembered the person who had Stunned her, and she had to be sure that Harry was all right. Fleur knew she had to warn someone about the culprit and the possible danger he represented. She owed it to Harry, who had saved her little sister when she should have but couldn't.

Of course, when she had hastily gotten up, fenced her mother's and Madame Maxime's attempts to get her back into bed, and headed towards Hogwarts' castle, she didn't expect to find out that it had all been a Death Eater's fault.

Let alone discover that the Dark Lord had come back.

Fleur let the tears streak down her face freely now. She could no longer hold back the painful memories of her father's death or the fear she was feeling. 

***

Bill never returned to Egypt. Before reaching his father, even before leaving Hogwarts, he knew that he wouldn't be able to leave his family at England, now that they were in danger. Now that all the wizarding community was in danger. Now that You-Know-Who had returned.

The morning following the day of the Triwizard Tournament, Bill woke up in his old bedroom at the Burrow, a headache threatening to split his brain into two. He had stayed up until very late the night before, telling his father and Percy all that had happened as many times as it took for them to fully believe and understand it. His father had questioned him about everything he thought might be of relevance, while Percy had mostly kept to himself, seated at the kitchen table and eyeing his older brother and father intently. Not at all up to his usually pompous and talkative self. Bill couldn't blame them, though. He still had trouble understanding and accepting it himself. No wonder he had a headache.

And even though the orange that covered all the walls of the room had nothing to do with the reason why he had such a headache, they did nothing to improve it. Actually, they made Bill feel worse, looking so bright under the sunlight shinning upon them from the partially opened window.

Bill moved slowly to his feet, and dragged his weary and unrest form down the staircase and into the kitchen, where he hoped to find a nice and strong coffee.

When he entered the kitchen, Bill found out a note from his father at the table.

_Bill,_

_I've gone early to the Ministry. The faster we start preparing for whatever comes our way and the more people we can get to help us, the better._

_Arthur_

That only hardened Bill's decision. He took out a bit of parchment and a quill, and hastily scribbled a letter to Gringotts Bank, asking for a transfer to the London branch.

Looking at the owl's perch, Bill surveyed Errol only for a few moments before attaching his parchment to Hermes. Bill didn't think that Errol would survive the trip.

"What are you doing?" Percy's voice startled Bill.

"I thought you had gone to the Ministry with Dad."

"Clearly you did. You wouldn't be using my owl if you knew I was home, would you?"

Bill rolled his eyes. "Perce, I'm not Fred, George or Ron. I'm not afraid of you fussing about me using your owl. Besides, I'm sending a letter to Egypt, and Errol wouldn't be able to go there and back again." With that, Bill opened the small kitchen window, allowing Hermes to fly through it.

"Well," Percy stammered. "You could have at least asked me before you borrowed it."

"I'd have if I'd known that you were home. Why aren't you at the Ministry?" Bill frowned. "You'll be late for work if you don't hurry."

"I'm leaving in a few. But first I wanted a word with you." Percy sat on one of the chairs around the kitchen table. Bill sighed. Grabbing a cup and pouring some hot coffee for himself, he sat facing Percy.

"Well?" Bill asked, reaching for toasts and butter when Percy remained in silence. "What is it?"

"Are you really sure that You-Know-Who is back?"

Bill eyed his brother, prepared to find fear shinning in his eyes. But instead of fear, he found incredulity on them. "Yes. Harry saw him coming back to life. Besides, can you think any other explanation for Cedric Diggory's death?"

"Well... Didn't you find a lunatic Death Eater at Hogwarts?"

"Yes, we did, but he never left Hogwarts. How could he be responsible for Cedric's death?"

"Well, if Harry and Cedric never really left Hogwarts, he could have killed Cedric."

Bill stared at his brother. "And why would Harry tell a different story about Cedric's death?"

Percy looked down at his hands. After a while, he spoke up again. "Even if You-Know-Who is back, why alert all the wizarding community? It will only raise panic and fear. What good it will do? And I truly think that contacting the giants and removing the Dementors from Azkaban will only increase the panic and fear."

"Perce, think about what you're saying. Wouldn't it be better to be prepared for a possible attack from You-Know-Who then try and fight against him after he attack us by surprise?"

Percy continued to stare at his hands. Checking his watch, he muttered, "I have to go, or I will be late for work. Talk to you later," and Disapparated.

Bill stared at his brother's vacant spot for a while before quietly and thoughtfully finishing his breakfast. Was it possible that Percy...? No, he couldn't even think about it. He knew his brother was quite capable of seeing reason.

He was almost done cleaning up the mess he, Percy and Arthur had done in the kitchen when Mrs. Weasley Apparated next to him.

"Oh, hello, dear." She looked troubled. _But who wouldn't in our situation?_ Bill thought. He looked at his mum and frowned. "I thought you'd stay at Hogwarts for a while longer."

Mrs. Weasley ruffed. "Well, there was not much I could do there, was there? Harry is already in the very good care of Madam Pomfrey, as Professor Dumbledore reminded me." Bill quirked an eyebrow up at Mrs. Weasley, but she either ignored that or didn't notice. Her features softened. "Besides, I couldn't let the Diggorys come back home alone in the awful state they are in. We travelled through Floo Powder to their house, and I only Disapparated after making tea and being sure they had a spot of it to calm down a bit." Mrs. Weasley sighed. "Poor Amos. He hasn't stopped crying ever since he saw Cedric's body, and his wife is beyond tears. Professor Dumbledore told me that he would arrange everything for Cedric's funeral."

Molly fidgeted a bit, as if wanting to say something else but not really sure about it. "Mum, is there something else?"

She eyed her eldest son with moistened eyes. "I asked Dumbledore if Harry could come straight here for the summer, but he can't. He has to go to the Dursleys first."

"I'm sure they can't be as bad as you and Dad think. They will probably be worried about what happened to Harry."

Molly snorted, but didn't voice her opinion about Harry's relatives. "You don't understand, Bill." She added in a whisper. "Harry blames himself for Cedric's death."


	5. Chapter 5: Between what's right and what...

**Crossing Ways**

Chapter 5: Between what's right and what's easy… 

_"Remember Cedric Diggory."_

The words echoed inside Fleur's head as she tried to sleep. It was not the handsome boy she had pursued before the Yule Ball that was troubling her; he was but part of the problem. This was her last night at Hogwarts, and Professor Dumbledore had told everyone in the Great Hall about You-Know-Who's return. There was no point in denying that knowledge now, or to hope fervently that it all had been just a big misunderstanding.

The Dark Lord had returned, and had probably summoned his faithful Death Eaters.

Fleur felt coldness washing over her at that thought. Over the years, she had grown up to learn that her father, who had bravely joined in the war against You-Know-Who, had been killed by a married couple of Death Eaters.

The Lestranges.

She loathed that name with every fibre of her being, and felt a guilty pleasure to know that they had been rotting at Azkaban for the past thirteen years, with the rest of them. The rest of You-Know-Who's supporters or, as they were called, Death Eaters.

They were the ones responsible for her father's death. He had died, unfair as it was, because he had decided to do the right thing. But he shouldn't and wouldn't have done otherwise. And Fleur knew that, wherever he was, he would expect no less from her. He would expect her to do the right thing.

That didn't stop her from being afraid. Nor did her fear made her back away from what she knew she should do. She knew her decision would be the same one as her father's. Professor Dumbledore's words that night had only served the purpose of strengthening her resolve. It had given her an idea of what she could do to help.

Besides, she had always wanted people to regard her as Fleur Delacour, the witch, and not Fleur Delacour, beautiful and empty-headed Veela. This was her chance to prove herself.

Or rather, her second chance to prove herself.

Fleur sighed. She had always liked challenges, especially those that relied upon her intelligence and skills rather than her beauty. One of the reasons she had wanted so badly to join the Triwizard Tournament. She saw that as her chance to prove her value as a witch. She even thought that her will to prove herself had been what had tilted the Goblet of Fire towards choosing her as Beauxbatons' champion, since all the other Beauxbatons students were as capable or even more capable than her.

In the end, she had failed in nearly all the tasks at the Tournament. Harry Potter, the little boy she had refused to believe being even capable of competing in the Tournament, had won it. Not only that, but he had also saved her sister when she hadn't been able to during the second task.

She had made with Harry the same mistake people often did with her. She had underestimated him, like people always did with her. Everyone underestimates her intelligence simply because she is part Veela, or simply because she is pretty or blond. Like her good looks prevented her from being intelligent and capable of taking care of herself. 

Or maybe everyone was right and her good looks did prevent her from taking care of herself.

Fleur knew a fully-fledged Death Eater had attacked her at the Third Task, and that no one expected too many people to be able to deal with a Death Eater. But she still thought she should have been able to defend herself. She knew she could if she worked hard enough. 

Gulping down the lump that had formed in her throat, Fleur came to a decision. She would join in the fight against the Dark Lord, like her father had done before her. If little Harry Potter could face the Dark Lord and survive, so would she. She would prove to all those who doubted her abilities that she was a very capable witch. Not just a Veela.

She couldn't help but snort. A Veela feeling the need to prove herself? That should be a first in the magical community's history.

She knew her mother would be against her joining the war. She knew her mother would cry, fuss, threat, and do everything else all mothers do to prevent their children from doing what they think is wrong for them. Fleur couldn't blame her. She would probably be too scared to lose another loved one to the Dark Lord.

But Fleur knew she had to help in the war. She owed it to her father and, in some way, to herself too.

Therefore, she needed to come up with a fair argument to convince her mother that she was doing the right thing by joining the war. As she was unable to, her head began hurting.

She had almost given up when an idea popped into her mind. Perhaps if her mother didn't know what were her true intentions...if she thought Fleur was staying at England just to improve her English or something else...

With those thoughts in mind, Fleur finally fell into slumber.

***

It was a rainy morning on late July. The chilly wind that whipped at their robes seemed out-of-place in a summer's day, but matched the mood of the people gathered for the funeral.

They were huddling together under umbrellas, since magic was not allowed in a Muggle Cemetery. If it was for fear of the rain or in search of human heat Bill didn't know.

The only person who didn't seem to care how wet his robes could get under the rain was Mr. Diggory. He was staring down at the coffin containing his only son, about to be lowered into his last resting place. His face was emotionless, as if carved in stone. But his eyes betrayed the pain he was struggling to bury deep down.

His wife had been quietly weeping next to him, supported by a woman who could only be her sister. At least until a raven-haired girl had appeared in the middle of the priest's speech commending Cedric's soul to God. She had walked quietly to Mrs. Diggory, and when the woman had looked up to face the owner of the slim hand that had come to rest on her shoulder, she had engulfed the girl in a tight hug. When they had parted, Bill noticed that the girl's eyes were red, her hair was in disarray, and that she seemed to be forcing herself to stay there, standing next to the grave. She was not able to look at it, though.

Next to them stood the Diggory's relatives, some family friends and quite a lot of Cedric's classmates. The other side of the grave was occupied by the Weasley family and Professors Dumbledore, McGonagall and Sprout. The three of them had been able to attend because the summer holidays had already begun.

Bill was glad to note that Rita Skeeter wasn't there. She would make sure to connect Harry's absence with the fact that he had been the last one to see Cedric alive. The boy didn't need that kind of stuff hanging over his head right now and Rita's articles would only make things worse for Harry.

When the priest had finished to say his words, the only thing they could hear was the rain splattering on the earth. Cedric's coffin was lowered, and as the first shovel of dirt hit the wood, Mrs. Diggory's desperate wails increased and almost drowned the sound of the light rain falling on them.

Her husband seemed to be shaken awake from his stupor by that and reached out to her, embracing her. She instantly relaxed a bit. Bill couldn't be sure, since Mr. Diggory's face was completely wet with rain by that moment, but he thought he had seen a couple of tears streaking down his cheeks.

"Arthur, I know this is not the most appropriate time, but I'd like a word with you." Dumbledore softly spoke to Mr. Weasley, who was standing right next to Bill.

"Sure. You can come to our house; we'll talk there. And Molly can make some hot tea while you wait for your travelling cloaks to dry before leaving."

Dumbledore raised his eyebrows politely. "I don't want to impose on you more than necessary."

"Don't worry. You won't." And those were the last words spoken in the cemetery, as the crowd gathered there slowly began to part and leave.

***

When Fleur arrived at Hogwarts' gates, she had been prepared to find no one there except the groundskeeper, who hopefully would know where Professor Dumbledore was. It was not usual, after all, for any Staff to stay at the school during the Holidays.

But when she approached the gates and tried calling out to someone, she found out the school had been completely empty.  That was weird.

She was about to turn and go to the nearest town to try and gather some information on where she might find Professor Dumbledore during the holidays, when two witches wearing heavy and drenched raincoats had Apparated next to her.

One was short, with wavy grey hair and hands dirty with earth. The Herbology teacher, most likely. The other Fleur recognised as Hogwarts' Deputy Headmistress, Minerva McGonagall. She was taken aback to find Fleur there. Fleur couldn't blame her.

"Bonjour, Professor McGonagall. I was 'oping I could talk with Professor Dumblydorr, do you know where I can find 'im? I really need to talk to 'im."

"Professor Dumbledore is not here at the moment."

Fleur smiled. A somewhat haughty and slightly petulant smile, but a smile nonetheless. "I know zat, but where can I find 'im? Does he live around 'ere? It's important."

Professor McGonagall pursued her lips and quirked up one eyebrow. "What I meant was that he is not here at this exact moment, but he should be back by dusk. If you so desperately need to talk to him, you can come inside and wait." With that, Professor McGonagall took out her wand, muttered a series of spells and charms, and opened the gates to Hogwarts. When the other Professor had entered, Professor McGonagall stood to the side of the gate. "Well? Are you coming in or not?"

Fleur took hold of her trunk on the ground and followed inside.

***

Professor Dumbledore only got up to leave the Burrow many hours later. He, Mr. and Mrs. Weasley, Charlie and Bill had spent the afternoon talking about what Mr. Weasley had accomplished at the Ministry, how many people were aware of the Dark Lord's return, and how many were willing to cooperate with Dumbledore.

That was not a very promising number.

Bill felt angry with that. How could people be so selfish as to pretend nothing had happened only because they didn't want to jeopardise their perfect little lives? Didn't they see that they were risking exactly that by not preparing to face the Dark Lord?

The moment Professor Dumbledore got to his feet, Bill blurted out. "May I accompany you outside, Professor?" eliciting a raised eyebrow from his old Headmaster, but Dumbledore didn't voice his surprise. He merely nodded and followed Bill outside the Burrow.

Once they were out of his mother's earshot, Bill turned to face Dumbledore, a resolute expression on his face. But his words failed him. He didn't know how to approach the subject.

"Did you want to talk to me privately about something, Mr. Weasley? I could have Disapparated from inside the house, you know?" Dumbledore said chuckling, but Bill saw no amusement on his inquisitive eyes.

 "As a matter of fact, yes, Professor. I know my Mum will fuss about this, but it's my decision to begin with. That's why I wanted to talk to you in private." Bill raised his chin as a sign of bravery and resolution. "I want to help in the war."

"You already helped by bringing my message to your father, and you are still helping by being here for them." Dumbledore replied quietly.

 "I mean _really help. To _actively_ help in the war. If the Ministry had started to prepare for the war, they would be recruiting people to become Aurors or such, like my father said. But that's not the case." Bill said, unwillingly raising his voice. "So," he continued in a more controlled tone, "I don't know what else to do, or who to turn to but you, Professor. I don't want to keep still, watching and waiting until someone in my family gets hurt."_

Reaching up to gently place his hand on Bill's shoulder, Dumbledore said. "You are a true Gryffindor, Mr. Weasley. Just like every member in your family. Right now, there is not much we can do. But I will contact you when the appropriate time comes about your offer. Be prepared." 

And with that, Dumbledore Disapparated.

***

When Professor McGonagall left her alone at Dumbledore's office, Fleur surveyed the objects scattered around the room. Professor Dumbledore had always seemed quite an eccentric wizard to her, and his office reaffirmed that. But it also revealed a bit more about his character.

A phoenix was sleeping just to the side of the entrance door. Fleur was instantly amazed at the bird's plumage, mesmerised by its colour. None of the drawings and depictions she had seen of phoenixes so far had made the species any justice. She had been looking the bird at close range when it opened its eyes and stared almost enquiringly at her. She smiled friendly to the bird and reached out carefully to pat his feathers. That simple action seemed to calm the bird down, and soon he was resting on his perch again.

Surveying the rest of the room, she had noticed that musical instruments similar to some of her grandmother's took a large portion of it. It seemed that Professor Dumbledore shared her grandmother's interest in music. Fleur didn't remember the names of the instruments, though.

On the office desk there were some quills, an inkbottle, a copy of the _Daily Prophet, and some papers standing in a neat pile on the corner, that Fleur didn't look at closely because she didn't want to pry on Dumbledore's business. Recognising the headline on the newspaper, Fleur refrained from taking it. She had read that report this morning, and the picture on the main page was very unsettling to her._

Her eyes trailed to the shelves around Dumbledore's office, where she found a large collection of books, on all kinds of serious subjects, looking brand new. The ones that looked quite worn-out bore titles such as _"Muggle sweets: is there magic behind those?" Perhaps Professor Dumbledore only charmed the more important books to last longer._

Choosing one of the books he probably wouldn't mind much to lend to someone, Fleur sat at one of the chairs facing his desk. The book was called _Hogwarts, a History and seemed quite an interest reading for someone who knew nothing about the castle._

Hours later, Fleur put the book she had just finished reading back on place and looked around herself once more. She had been waiting for quite sometime and was mostly impatient at the moment. She started pacing up and down the office, feeling her legs numb after staying seated for so long, and was just about to go looking for Professor McGonagall when Professor Dumbledore came through the door.

"Good evening, Mademoiselle Delacour." Dumbledore circled his desk and sat at the chair on the other side. "Professor McGonagall just informed me you have been waiting for me. I'm sorry about that, but you could have owled warning us about your impending visit, you know?" He said with a twinkle in his eyes indicating the chair Fleur had been sitting for the past hours.

Fleur sat down again and began wriggling her hands together. She knew why she had come here. She had thought about her decision over and over again, weighting everything that needed to, but now that it came to her actual actions, she felt nervous.

"Do you want to tell me something, Mademoiselle Delacour? I don't think you came all the way over here and waited for so long just to read _Hogwarts, a History, did you?" Laughter could be seen dancing in Dumbledore's eyes._

"No. I came over 'ere because..." she hesitated. Looking up to Dumbledore, she sighed. "At ze end of ze school year, weeks ago, you said zat in ze light of ze Dark Lord's return, all ze wizarding community had to stay together and be strong. You also said zat everyone would be welcome at Hogwarts if they chose to visit." Looking straight to Dumbledore, her chin raised in defiance, she finished. "I came 'ere today because I want to help in ze war against ze Dark Lord."

 "Are you sure you are prepared for it?" Dumbledore asked seriously. "You are very young, and you've just graduated from Beauxbatons."

"Yes, I am sure." She added, a yellow Veela-ish glint on her azure eyes.

Seeing the determination on her face, Dumbledore nodded. "Fair enough. I can't stop you from doing what you feel is right. But I can make sure you are ready for it."

***

When Bill returned to the kitchen, he found his father waiting for him with a serious look on his face. "You asked Dumbledore to help in the war, didn't you?"

Bill knew he could tell his father the truth. As a matter of fact, he would need his father's help in making Mrs. Weasley understand. "Yes. He says he doesn't know when he will call me, but I did offer my help."

Mr. Weasley approached his son and gave him a big and very tight hug. When they parted, Bill noticed that his father's eyes were a bit wet. "I'm very proud of you, my son. And I'm sure your mother will be, as well," he chuckled. "But that won't stop her from fussing and worrying about you, as well as doing everything in her power to stop you. You know that, don't you?"

Bill nodded. "I know. But I've made up my mind and nothing will change that."

Arthur cuffed his son's shoulder. "Well, we'll just have to figure out a way to postpone giving these news to her for as long as possible, right?"

Bill grinned at his father. "Or figure out a way to distract her from my news. Remember what Charlie did when he told her that he was going to work with dragons?"

Arthur chuckled. "I don't think I've ever seen your mother that mad with the twins...Well, until that whole deal with the Weasleys Wizard Wheezes joke shop, that is."

"I don't think Fred and George have quite forgiven Charlie for setting them up that time."

Arthur laughed out loud. "Ah, your brothers can't hold a grudge against anyone for too long. They had forgiven Charlie by the next day and actually complimented him on his well-thought plan before he headed to his dragon's camp. Of course, he didn't notice that they had sneaked a dungbomb into his trunk..."

It was Bill's turn to laugh out loud. Whipping tears off his eyes, he asked. "Well, as funny as that was, I don't think Mum would fall for something like that again. She is too clever for that." He continued seriously now, as his father reached down on the floor for something with his brow furrowed. "What would be a good diversion?"

Arthur straightened himself up and surveyed what Bill recognised as the _Daily Prophet. During the riot that had issued in the Burrow this morning before they left for the funeral they must have missed the newspaper when it was delivered by owl. Mr. Weasley blanched as he read it._

"Dad, what is it?"

"I don't think we'll need to come up with something to take your mother's mind off you, son," and he extended the newspaper to Bill.

At the front page, Bill read the headline _Retired Auror Found Dead at Home. The article stated that Alastor Moody had been found dead alone inside his house, apparently of natural causes, and was followed by a picture of Moody._


	6. Chapter 6: When the past comes back to h...

**Crossing Ways**

Chapter 6: When the past comes back to haunt…

After her talk with Professor Dumbledore Professor McGonagall led Fleur through corridors, moving stairs, and hidden passages to an old suit of armour. Hidden behind that suit of armour were the guestrooms, which you could only enter if you provided the proper password. 

Giving the layout of the spiralling staircase and the shape of the rooms, Fleur figured she was probably inside one of the smaller towers of the castle. She was given the upper room out of the three inside the tower. The room had the shape of a three-quarter circle, with two small straight walls and one very large and round wall that covered almost the entire room. On the part of the room visible from the door, you could see a pair of stuffed chairs with a low table in between, facing the fireplace nestled on the round wall. Walking to the left side of the door, you could see first a window and then the bed, which stood against the other straight wall. Standing just beneath the window was a desk with some clean parchment and quills. The four-poster had brown hangings and cover, the last one bearing a golden Hogwarts crest. Her trunk was already placed near the bed.

After Fleur assured her that she wasn't hungry to begin with and was too tired to have dinner, and after explaining to Fleur how to get to the Great Hall from her bedroom, Professor McGonagall left her alone. Fleur quickly changed her robes and settled herself to sleep. The following day would be exhaustive and she needed to rest.

In the morning Fleur woke up feeling a bit anxious. Before coming to Hogwarts, she had been nervous that Professor Dumbledore would turn her offer down. This morning, her anxiety was over her Auror training. 

Professor Dumbledore had told her that even though he didn't doubt her abilities and magical knowledge, he thought she could use some practical training, since all she had ever learned and done concerning Dark Arts Defence - apart from the Tournament - had been theoretical.

He had also told her that even though she wouldn't be considered an official Auror, she would receive training from an experienced Auror like anyone willingly to pursue that career usually did nowadays. The Auror would not only give her some practical learning in Dark Arts Defence, but would also help her in any weak points she showed during her training.

After making herself presentable, Fleur headed downstairs. On her way down the spiralling staircase that led to the guests' rooms, she heard a sound coming from the lowest guestroom. Apparently, she wasn't the only guest at Hogwarts.

Leaving the Guests Tower, Fleur was glad for Professor McGonagall's directions the previous night. She had spent almost an entire year at Hogwarts, but most of her time had been spent at the Beauxbatons carriage, having classes with Madame Maxime, who had server as a tutor to Fleur and the rest of her classmates who had come to Hogwarts for the Tournament. She had never wandered inside the upper floors, and therefore she didn't quite know the castle.

When she finally entered the Great Hall, she saw that only one table was set for breakfast, in the middle of the room. There were only a few people there, but they were already eating. It must have taken her longer than she realised to find her way down here.

Approaching the table she saw that Professor Dumbledore sat at the head of the table, with Professor McGonagall at his right side. Next to her sat that short and plum witch Fleur had seen the day before with Professor McGonagall. There were only two more places at the table, both vacant, and Fleur took the one in front of the plump witch.

"Good morning, Mademoiselle Delacour. I trust you already know Professor Sprout, don't you?"

Sprout. That was the name Fleur had forgotten. "Yes, Professor Dumblydorr. Good morning, Professors," she acknowledged both women with a smile.

At that moment, another teacher entered the Hall. This one Fleur remembered, the rigid features on his pale face quite remarkable. Although his face seemed a bit paler than she remembered and he had shadows under his eyes. "Good morning, Professor Snape," Fleur said when he approached the table.

The new arrival barely acknowledged her with a nod, and sat on the last vacant spot. Professor Dumbledore spoke quietly to him. 

"Is everything all right, Severus?"

Professor Snape's eyes darted briefly to Fleur before focusing on Dumbledore's. "As expected." 

"I advise you to have a nice breakfast, Mademoiselle Delacour." Apparently, Professor Dumbledore had noticed how Fleur seemed curious about Professor Snape. "You are to begin your training afterwards." He said, smiling.

Fleur tried to hide the slight blush of her cheeks for being caught by pouring some pumpkin juice to herself, but she still heard Dumbledore's softly spoken request to Professor Snape.

"I want to have a word with you after breakfast, Severus. Would you be so kind as to wait for me in my office after you're finished?"

From the corner of her eyes, Fleur saw Snape merely nodding and starting to eat his breakfast in silence, as the rest of them.

***

After Cedric's funeral and making his decision known to Dumbledore, Bill felt strangely calmer. A common Muggle saying he had learned at Muggle Studies was the best explanation for how he felt: "After the storm, always comes a time of peacefulness."

But with life starting to settle itself as back into normal as possible, Bill's thoughts – which had been so focused inward until the funeral – turned to those around him. To the person who had stood out the most to him against the background of his noisy family, even though through everything that had happened the last few weeks: Ginny.

Ginny had never been as boisterous and noisy as the twins or Charlie, nor as vividly and visually temperamental as Ron. She had been born when Bill already was a Hogwarts student, and they had spent very little time together, so, Bill had never bonded with Ginny much. But he loved and cared for her, and he knew she was that kind of person who usually didn't shut up.

However, since coming back from Hogwarts, she had mostly kept to herself. No one so far had noticed because everyone was more than a little shaken by Cedric's death. Another reason for that was that the two people closer to her had been quite preoccupied lately.

Mr. Weasley, by far the closest person to Ginny, was the first up every morning at the Burrow, and more than often he arrived after dinner had been served and sometimes even eaten – to Mrs. Weasley's chagrin. That did not left much time to his only daughter.

Percy, the other Weasley closer to Ginny also seemed to be overly quiet. He had always defended Ginny and Ron when they were little from Fred and George antics, and although Ron had strayed away from Percy when he got older, Ginny hadn't. And despite the fact that Percy was the calmer, or rather possibly the only calm Weasley, he usually didn't keep to himself, but he had not bragged once about his perfect work or otherwise. Probably because of his fresh memory with time spent with the Unspeakables. However, Bill had a nagging and disturbing feeling that there was more to Percy's mood than that. His talk with Percy the morning following the third task kept haunting Bill for some reason.

But who concerned most Bill at the moment was Ginny. Percy was a young man and should be able to deal with his own problems or should at least to know when he needed help and ask for it. Ginny, on the other hand, was still very young and quite stubborn. Besides, she had been into trouble before without anyone else knowing. 

Watching Ginny seated quietly on the living room's couch, with her feet tucked under her and a book in her hands, Bill reached a decision. She had already gone through some rough times in her life, and who knows if a simple talk would have prevented that? Maybe if they had paid a little more attention to Ginny they would have perceived that something was wrong.

Looking through the window, Bill saw Ron, Charlie and the twins playing Quidditch. Mr. Weasley and Percy, naturally, were at the Ministry. And Mrs. Weasley was making dinner in the kitchen.

This was a good a time as ever. 

"Ginny?" Bill prompted. She raised her eyes from the page she had been staring at for the last half hour – Bill had noticed she wasn't really reading – and answered, "Yes, Bill?"

Acknowledging the need to talk to Ginny was one thing. Squeezing out off her what was troubling her without scaring her away was another one entirely.

"What's this book you're reading about?"

"Oh," Ginny looked at the book on her hands and turned it to look at the cover. "It's a Muggle's book dad gave me for Christmas called…"

"You are not really reading it, are you?" Bill interrupted her. "Otherwise you wouldn't need to look at the cover to read its name."

Ginny's face turned a little pink. "What are you implying at? I just forgot the name, it's a new book."

Bill saw right through her lie. Sometimes she was much like Ron – very easy to read. "Ginny, I know you are troubled by something. You can choose to deny it or not, but I know you are. And I'm willingly to help."

"There is nothing to tell." She said, keeping her face straight.

"Well, I think there is. And if you don't tell me, I may be forced to talk with Mum and Dad about it, and I will find out eventually what was it."

Ginny seemed taken aback by Bill's words for a moment, but soon a smile crept to her lips. "You are going to tell on me to Mum and Dad?" She finished, amused.

Bill could feel his cheeks getting hot. He was not a kid anymore! "Ginny, you know it's not like that. I'm just worried about you. Tell me, what's wrong?" He finished, quite seriously.

Ginny bit her lower lip and seemed to ponder for a bit. "Promise not to tell Mum and Dad? I don't want to worry them."

Bill unconsciously stuffed out his chest, like he used to when he was Head Boy. "You know I can't promise you that. But I can promise you this: I'll make my best to make them not worry more than necessary."

Ginny seemed uncertain for a bit, but when she closed her book and put her feet on the floor, Bill knew she had given in to his plea.

However, instead of telling Bill right off what it was that was troubling her, Ginny took a deep breath. Soon, she had started rocking backwards and forwards like a child, with her face closed and her forehead furrowed. 

Like she had been doing the summer after her first year at Hogwarts.

A nagging feeling set in the pit of Bill's stomack. "Does it have anything to do with You-Know-Who? Did you start having nightmares with him again after he was reborn?"

Ginny looked quickly up at Bill. "Yes – no… Well, yes, but just this one time." Bill felt somewhat a bit relieved. "During the Triwizard Tournament's Third Task." Bill stiffened.

***

"Miss Delacour, I'd like to impress upon you one more time the seriousness of the task you've set yourself to do."

Fleur just stared, both determinedly and stubbornly at Dumbledore. They were standing outside one of the Hogwarts classrooms. After finishing breakfast, Dumbledore had led Fleur there, only stopping shortly when approaching the door to their right.

At Fleur's determined look, Dumbledore spoke up again. "As I told you yesterday, before allowing you to help in the war, you have to undertake an Auror training, even though you will be not working for the Ministry as one. Your instructor is inside this classroom, waiting for you. Given special circumstances, I must ask you to be secretive about his identity."

"I understand."

"Very well." And he opened the door for her, making room for Fleur to enter.

Once she stepped inside the classroom and saw who was seated upon the teacher's chair, Fleur froze on her tracks. An intense feeling of fear ran down her spine, making her body shiver as if suddenly touched by a burst of cold air. She clenched her hands into fists to try and control herself, and only barely managed it.

Her first impulse was to run. Her second was to attack. Neither prevailed, however.

"I thought you were dead," the words spilled from her mouth. Her logical side had overcome her instincts. 

***

"That night, while we waited for Harry and the other champions to leave the Maze, I fell asleep." Ginny looked at Bill quizzically.

"Yes, I remember that."

"Anyway, for those few minutes I was sleeping, I had a dream. A nightmare, really." Ginny pressed her eyes shut, as if trying to remember. "I saw everything as if through a haze - like my eyes were blurred or something… There were statues around me, but I couldn't see their form." She paused, her brow furrowing even more, as she tried to remember her nightmare. "It was dark. From somewhere in my subconscious came a name for that place: Chamber of Secrets." She shuddered and Bill reached out for her with his hand. "It didn't make sense, though, because that place was at the same time similar and different from the Chamber." She gulped, disgust clear on her face. Bill gave her shoulder a reassuring squeeze. "Then I saw him again. Tom Riddle. Only it wasn't Tom. He was different…older…less human. And he was standing in the middle of flames and thick smoke." She opened her eyes and glanced at Bill quickly. "That was when I woke up."

"Ginny… That is serious. You know what happened that night, don't you?"

"Yes," she nodded fiercely. "Professor Dumbledore told us that Lord Voldemort –" Bill winced when he heard his little sister using the Dark Lord's proper name, "– came back to life."

Both Weasleys stayed silent for a moment, before Bill finally spoke up. "This nightmare you had," he knew what he wanted to say, but he was not so sure how to say it. "It could be connected to it."

"I know. Professor Dumbledore thinks it too."

Bill's eyebrows shut up. "Professor Dumbledore knows about it?"

"Yes, the day following the Third Task I told him about my nightmare. He had warned me after…after my first year that if anything strange should happen to me that I thought could be in someway connected to my…experience with Tom Riddle's diary, I should warn him. He was quite helpful during those first months, when I had nightmares about that time almost every night." Ginny suddenly seemed so grown up to Bill.

"Why didn't you tell Mum and Dad about it, Gin?"

"I don't want to worry them. Besides, that was a one time thing, I haven't had any nightmares again the whole summer. Please, don't tell Mum and Dad! They already blamed themselves pretty hard for the fact that Tom Riddle's diary fell to my hands, especially Dad. I don't want them to blame themselves for this anymore."

Bill gulped. His instincts told him to tell his parents all about it first chance he had. But the determined and preoccupied look on Ginny's face… Besides, Professor Dumbledore knew about it, so, he could help if it happened again.

"Ok, Ginny, I won't say a thing. But you have to promise me that if something like this happens again, you'll tell me either me or Professor Dumbledore, you got that?"

Ginny sighed in relief, and smiled at her oldest brother. "I promise."

***

"Yesterday's _Daily Prophet_…" Fleur began to say, but Dumbledore interrupted her. "…was a necessary precaution we had to take in order to protect Professor Moody. Voldemort will be expecting him to be dead, after all."

" 'E will?" Fleur looked from Moody to Dumbledore, her eyes wide open.

"Of course. The Death Eater who was posing as Professor Moody couldn't keep him alive after he was done with him." Dumbledore smiled. "Professor McGonagall told me about your encounter outside the Hospital Wing on the night of the Third Task." Noticing Fleur's staggered look, Dumbledore continued. "I don't think I need to explain to you why we had to take such measures, isn't that so, Mademoiselle Delacour?"

"Of…of course not," Fleur answered, her eyes still glued to the man in front of her. The man she consciously knew hadn't attacked her, but whose face had haunted her since that fateful night.

"Well, I will leave you two now. I have some pressing matters to attend to." And Dumbledore left.

Fleur kept quite still, standing in front of Professor Moody. She couldn't avert her eyes from his mismatched pair of eyes.

"Dumbledore told me you want to help in the war against Lord Voldemor, and as such, he thinks it would be wise to give you some Auror training." Fleur almost jumped at the sound of his voice, but she managed to control herself and nodded. "Well, I couldn't agree with him more. The lack of training of the Aurors during Voldemort's first reign of terror was quite disastrous for them. But back then we didn't have time to train Aurors. Those kids got to our Headquarters saying they wanted to be Aurors, we gave them badges, and send them right out, to fight against Voldemort and the Death Eaters. Mind you, if we had took the time to train them and check if they were right for the job, we might have found out which ones were right for the job and, perhaps the most important of all, which ones were traitors."

He looked at Fleur again, who had yet to move and was still staring wide-eyed at Moody.

"As I understand, you were Stunned by the Death Eater who pretended to be me, right?" When Fleur nodded, Moody continued. "I don't blame you for being weary at me then. That at least taught you to have CONSTANT VIGILANCE!" Moody pratically yelled, getting up from his chair and slapping his hand on the table in front of him. This time Fleur did jump.


	7. Chapter 7: The Fight

**Crossing Ways**

_Author's Note: Hey guys. Now that everyone has read OotP, including me, I'm trying to finish this piece of fanfiction I started a few months before new Canon. It will be a bit hard to fit things (harder than I expected) but it's possible. I think. I hope so. Anyway, enjoy the new chapter and leave a review! :)_

Chapter 7: The Fight

Shortly after his talk with Ginny, Bill received a letter from Gringotts accepting his transfer to a desk job at London. He immediately told his mother about the letter, but he kept his promise to Ginny and didn't reveal her secret to Mrs. Weasley, nor would he reveal it to his father.

Telling his mother about the job transfer, though, implied telling her the reasons behind it, and his talk with Dumbledore about helping in the war.

His mother took it much better than he expected. "Well, at least we'll get to have you at home, dear," Mrs. Weasley had said, a small smile on her lips. However, Bill knew that, no matter how well she concealed it, she was worried about him and his father.

At dinnertime, the rest of the family learned the news while they waited for Mr. Weasley and Percy to arrive from the Ministry for dinner. 

Charlie didn't waste the opportunity that presented itself before him. "Mum," he began, "I sent a letter to Dumbledore a few days ago. I also volunteered to help."

Bill and Charlie exchanged a smile. Bill remembered how ill tempered his brother had been when he had learned about Bill's talk to Dumbledore. Charlie had said that Bill should have spoken to him before that, because he wanted to do the same, and they could have talked about it with Dumbledore together.

"I'm going to help too!" Ron exclaimed, before their mother could say anything about Charlie's news.

"No, Ron. You are too young. You have to wait until you are of age." Mrs. Weasley was adamant.

"Well, in this case, George and I can help, then!" Fred said, smiling.

"No, you can't!"

George frowned. "Why not? We _are_ of age! We are even taking our Apparition tests in three days from today!"

"You still haven't left school!" Mrs Weasley all but shrieked.

A loud snap ended the discussion. Mr. Weasley had just Apparated inside the kitchen. "Good evening, Molly, dear. Good evening, children," he said as he sat down and surveyed his family around the table.

"Arthur, your sons think they can help in the war against Voldemort!"

Arthur eyed Bill and Charlie for a moment. "Well, we can hardly stop them, Molly. They have their own jobs and lead their own lives now…"

"I'm not talking about THEM, I'm talking about Ron and the twins!"

Arthur sighed and rubbed his eyes. "Molly, I don't really have the strength or will to discuss this right now…"

"Are you all right, dear?" Mrs. Weasley frowned, immediately forgetting about her children's desires when she noticed the weary lines on her husband's forehead.

"Fudge has been storming round the Ministry checking that nobody's having any contact with Dumbledore. He's actually made perfectly clear that anyone who's in league with Dumbledore can clear out their desks and leave," he sighed. "I think he suspects me."

Bill was certain that Fudge was breathing down his father's throat, if not for the fact that Mr. Weasley was friends with Dumbledore, then for the simple fact that he had never understood his father's fascination with Muggles. 

Before anyone could say anything, though, another loud snap could be heard in the kitchen. Percy had just Apparated, and he looked smug about something.

"I've been promoted, Mum!" Percy said brightly. Bill had never seen Percy so haughty, and he had seen Percy quite self-satisfied before. He had a very bad feeling about this in the pit of his stomach.

"Promoted? You were just under investigation because of what happened with Mr. Crouch, Percy." Mr. Weasley said.

"Yes, promoted. I was offered a position by the Minister himself to work side by side with him: Junior Assistant to the Minister." Percy said, stuffing out his chest as he said that.

He looked around at his family, obviously expecting approval and praise from at least a few of them. His eyes in particular lingered on Bill's. But none came, and his smile started to fade.

"You are not going to accept that, are you, son?" Mr. Weasley said that in the most serious tone that Bill had ever heard him use.

"Why shouldn't I? _I_ want to be able to give my family all they want in the future." Percy said arrogantly.

Bill thought he could hear a sharp intake of breath from his father. "What are you implying, Percy?"

"Father, don't get me wrong, but you…" Percy seemed to be looking for the right wording. Bill felt nauseated at his brother's stance. "…you had some important job opportunities pass you by, and that's why you were never able to pay for everything our family needed."

Bill had never heard such a dead silence in the Burrow.

"Percy, you do realize Fudge is not doing that because he thinks you capable of doing the job, don't you?" Arthur said, barely controlling his voice and anger. Bill didn't remember a time when he had seen his father angry.

"If not for my capability of performing the job, then why would he promote me, father?" Percy snapped. "Unlike you, I have always done an impeccable job. As a matter of fact, I have been struggling with your," another nauseating pause, "_reputation_ ever since I joined the Ministry, trying to prove that, unlike you, I'm up to the job, and I'm not about to turn down such a golden opportunity."

At that, Mr. Weasley's control slipped. "Percy, Fudge is only doing that because Dumbledore…" he started to raise his voice, but got cut off by Percy.

"Forgive me for saying so, father," Percy said even louder than his father, "but you are a fool if you trust Dumbledore." 

"Percy, are you going to blind yourself to the fact that You-Know-Who is back just for the sake of Fudge? Just for the sake of your _job_?" Mr. Weasley yelled incredulously and quite unexpectedly at his son.

"You have no evidence that You-Know-Who is back, father. No one has. And I'm not about to turn down a promotion on the word of a deranged kid and a nutty old wizard!" At that, the rest of the Weasley family around the table gasped. Ron actually got up from his chair, his cheeks red with rage. "I don't want to look back, twenty or thirty years from now, and realize that my family resents me because I caused them to be poor! I don't want to end up like you, father." 

Bill took a sharp intake of breath. Percy had gone a bit too far.

Ron got up from his chair and shouted. "SHUT UP, Percy! You don't know what you are talking about!"

Mr. Weasley looked dumbfounded.

Percy huffed. "Really, Ron? Weren't you mad when you had to work an entire _year_ with a broken wand?"

Ron's ears went pink.

"Percy, I think you are being quite unfair…" Bill began, but was cut off by Ginny.

"Percy, stop being a stupid _prat_!" she yelled. "You know we don't resent Dad for anything!"

At that, the twins got up and started to defend their father too. Bill and Charlie looked at each other, wanting to defend their father as well, but not feeling that yelling would be the right course of action to do it.

"Molly, children, could you please leave me and your brother alone?" Arthur said in a thunderous and commanding voice. It did not match his usual demeanor. 

The other Weasleys quickly filled out the room, leaving only Mr. Weasley and Percy behind. They couldn't bring themselves to leave the living room though, and sat themselves at the couch and mismatched chairs around it.

"Well, so much for perfect Percy…" Fred muttered under his breath, earning himself a shove by Charlie.

For most of the time, they couldn't hear much of what was going on in the kitchen, but every now and then a shout could be heard from within the kitchen.

"I know where my loyalty lies, father, and so should you."

The Weasleys have never been quite to still, especially the twins. They were listening intently, trying to catch what was being discussed inside the kitchen, but only catching a few phrases.

"You are blinded by power, Percy!"

Tense minutes slipped by. They Weasleys in the living room started to fidget on their seats.

"If you want to become traitors to the Ministry, don't drag me with you!"

Bill got up and started pacing from one side of the living room to the other, trying to remind himself that his father had asked him to leave, or else he would barge into the kitchen.

"Fudge is wrong to believe that You-Know-Who hasn't come back, and it's the Wizarding Community that is going to pay for it!"

The discussion went for a bit longer, until the door that separated the kitchen from the living room was vehemently opened to give way to a furious-looking Percy.

"I'm going to make sure everyone knows I don't belong to this family anymore, or less I risk my career!"

Percy left the room, his eyes bright with rage, and his face red with fury. His footsteps could be heard going up the stairs to his bedroom, the door being slammed shut, then his closet doors and drawers being opened and his trunk hastily packed.

"Let's eat," said Mr. Weasley, his voice low and colorless at the door of the kitchen. Looking at his father, Bill thought he saw small hints of contained anger in him: his tightly clenched jaw, his forehead deeply creased.

Looking at his mother, though, Bill felt his heart going out to her. Mrs. Weasley was crying silently.

***

Her first day of Auror training was exhausting. And it had been just the one day.

Moody had informed Fleur the day before that her training would be hard, and that they would train everyday, morning and afternoon, until the end of summer. He would assess her magical skills, her spell casting proficiency, and her knowledge of all things magical.

That, however, had not prepared her for the actual training.

It had started painlessly enough, with Charms. Fleur had always been a natural with Charms – probably because of her inborn Veela Charm – and so she not only had an easy time learning new Charms while at school, she had worked to sharpen and widen her knowledge on them, always researching the Beauxbatons library for more and more complicated Charms.

Moody actually hadn't had much to comment or complain about Fleur's Charms, even if he still hadn't looked pleased.

But everything went downhill from there.

After Charms, Fleur had had to do hexes and hex-deflection. The more common and ordinary hexes had come without much difficulty for her, but there had been some that she hadn't quite mastered, and a couple that she had never even heard about. That had earned her more than a few impatient growls from Moody. 

In the afternoon, things didn't improve. Fleur knew a lot about French magical creatures, but very little about British creatures, almost nothing about Oriental and African creatures, and nothing at all about South American creatures. Moody had given her a list with about a dozen books to read on that subject.

And just when Fleur thought things couldn't get any worse, there was curse-breaking.

She hadn't managed to break one simple curse on the magical object that Moody had especially brought for her class. However, he had only given her one book to study on the subject, dimissing her from the day rather gruffly.

_Curse Breaking for Beginners - A step-by-step explanation on the basics._

By the time Fleur had finished exploring the library, having dinner, and writing a letter to her mother, she had felt so drained that she collapsed on her bed, fast asleep

***

The next morning, Percy was gone. The twins, Ron and Ginny kept talking in hushed tones about him around the breakfast table, as if not to upset their mother, who looked like she had cried all night long, until Bill gave them a dirty look and they stopped. As for Mr. Weasley, he was trying to put up as calm a façade as possible. Like Percy's decision had not been a blow to him as well.

Bill didn't even want to think how his father and Percy would react to each other when they met by chance at the Ministry. He feared his father would not be so controlled about his emotions and thoughts, even though he knew better than to risk exposing Dumbledore and his preparations to face Voldemort.

"Mum, when are Harry and Hermione going to come spend the summer with us?" Ron quite suddenly asked.

"I already told you Dumbledore said Harry had to go to the Dursleys first…" Mrs Weasley said in a tired voice.

"Well, hasn't he been there for long already?" Ron interrupted.

Mrs. Weasley snapped at her son. "Ron, Dumbledore promised me he would tell me _when_ and _if_ Harry can come visit us! So, if I haven't told you anything, no, Harry can't come yet!"

"But Hermione can come, right, Mum?" Ginny asked, throwing Mrs. Weasley off, and quickly added. "You should write to her and invite her, Ron."

"Erm, well... I mean, I don't know if... because Harry won't... I mean..."

"If you don't write her, then I will." Ginny said simply, getting up from her chair at the table, going to the living room and coming back a while later with what could only be a letter in her hands, and attaching it to Errol.

Bill suppressed a laugh. Apparently Ron still hadn't figured out that his feelings for Hermione were changing.

After eating breakfast, Bill got up to get ready for work – he was supposed to present himself for his new occupation at Gringotts London today – but when he reached the staircase, he heard a knock on the front door.

He promptly turned around and opened the door. Standing there was a man in shabby robes, with light brown hair blemished with a few gray ones.

"Good morning," he said in a pleasant voice. "Is Mr. Weasley at home? I'd like to speak with him."

"Yes, he is. And you are...?" Bill said, quirking one of his eyebrows up inquisitively.

"I'm Remus Lupin. I have a," he lowered his voice, "very important message for him from Dumbledore." That last part was delivered in a very serious tone.__


End file.
